Motion-picture-projecting machine



I July 31, 1923- 1,463.41 7 W. J. BLANKENBERG MOTION PICTURE PROJECTING MACHINE Filed Sept. 2 1920 2 Sheets$heet l 1/ I flu?- @za- E k ATTORNE 7- July 31; 1923- 1,463,43 7

W. J. BLANKENBERG MOTION PICTURE PROJECTING MACHINE Filed Sent. 2 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 31, 1%235.

UNHTED TATES I mean? Parent caries.

WILLIAMS J. BLANKENBERG, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE PERFECT PROJECTOR MACHINE COMPANY, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, AN UNINCORPORATED STOCK-ISSUING COMPANY ORGANIZED BY A DECLARATION OF TRUST UNDER THE COMMON LAW OF ,NEW YORK.

MOTION-PICTURE-PROJECTING MACHINE.

Application filed September 24, 1920. Serial No. 412,604.

T 0 all whom it may concern.

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM BERG, at Bufialo, in the county of Erie and State of New York have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Motion-P10- ture-Projecting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to motion-picture-proj ecting machines and more praticularly to a machine adapted for operation J. VBLANKETN- with an endless strip of film and essentially cessibility to the film-carrier as occasion may require, thereby insuring facility in removing, inserting and exchanging films, and to provide a film-carrier and associated mechanism of simple structural nature and light and compact organization whereby the entire structure may be made as a portable unit which can readily be carried in the hand.

With the stated objects in view the invention consists in certain features of combination and organization appertaining to the film-carrier and the co-operating filmfeeding mechanisms and also in structural details of said film-carrier and said mecha nisms. 4

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the project ing mechanism, the film-carrier and the filmfeeding mechanisms.

Figures 2 to 5 inclusive are detail crosssections on the respective lines 2-2, 33, 4-4, and 55 of Figure 1.

Figures 6 and 7 are detailed sections on the respective lines 6-6 and 7 7 of Figure2.

Similar characters of reference designate a citizen of the United States, residing id to the focal axis.

corresponding parts throughout the several Views.

The operating parts, as shown in Figure 1, are enclosed in a box 1 which may be provided at one end with a lamp chamber 2. The invention is not concerned with details of the projecting mechanism which may be of any suitable construction. Such mechanism is indicated generally by the numeral 3 and is operated in the usual manner by a removable crank-handle 4c.

The endless film 5'is supported in coil form on an annular carrier 6 which is normally located above and in front of the projecting mechanism and in a plane paral- Said carrier, accord ing to the invention comprises a vertical ring 7 which is provided with a series of closely associated laterally directed film supporting projections 8 and with another series of'radially directed film guiding or retaining projections 9. The projections 8 and '9 are preferably in the form of suitably mounted anti-friction rollers. The coil of film surrounds the annular series of projections 8 and is retained in such positions by the rollers 9 and co-operating retaining bars 10 secured to theadjoining wall of the box 1, the bars 10 overlying and engaging the coil of film at its sides.

The film carrier is movably mounted and in its normal operative position its inner side is closed by the bars 10, that is to say these bars act as obstructions and preventthe lateral displacement of the film. By the movement of the film carrier away from the bars '10 its inner side is unobstructed and thereby the coil of film may be taken from,

or placed upon, the projections 8. In the.

construction preferred the ring 7 is provided with a forwardly projecting hingedly mounted supporting bracket 11 and the film- 1 carrier is positively maintained in its normal position .by a latch finger 12 secured to the adjacent side wall of the box and engaging over the ring 7. By moving said finger'upward to the broken line position of Figure 1 the carrier is released and may be swung to a position athwart the boxin which position its inner side is open, that 1s to say, unobstructed.

The film, incident to its movement by mechanism arranged in suitable adjacency to the points at which the film is taken from and supplied to the coil.

At the take-off end of the coil the filmcperating mechanism comprises a sprocket 1 13 having teeth arranged to engage the marginal perforations of the film and retaining rollers 14 to hold the film in contact with said sprocket and insure-the effective engagement of said'teeth. The rollers 14 are mounted on a stem 15 which is hinged at one end, as at 16, in order that it may be thrown up or back and is suitably retained in its lowered position as by a spring 1?. The ring 7 carries a guide roller 18 which is located just inside of the annular series of projections 8 and is sufiiciently large to insure easy bending moments of the film as it passes from the coil to the sprocket 13. The film is looped about the periphery of said sprocket and beyondthe rollers 14 disengages said, sprocket and is I suitably directed to the projecting mechanism. Just below the roller 18 the ring is slit, as at 19, whereby the portion of the film which extends between the sprocket 13 and the projecting mechanism may be passed through the ring incident to the removal of the coil from the supporting projections 8 or to the insertion of the coil into the machine; In taking a film from the machine the rollers 14 are raised, the film disring is thereupon swung on its supporting hinge to a position athw'art the box andin such position the coil of film is slid in the direction of its axis from the projections 8 and the portion of the film at the other side of the ring 7 is passed through the slit 19, the film thereby being entirely free of its carrying or supporting means. The rest of the film is disengaged from the projecting mechanism in any suitable or usual way.

. The operation of placing a coil of filmjn the machine is just the reverse of that described and is performed in the obvious manner while the film carrier is positioned athwart the box 1. V

. At the supply end of the coil the film operating mechanism 20 is similar to that described. lit is preferred to interpose a guide and tension bar 21 between the mechanism 20 and the film-carrier. As shown and preferred similar film-operating mechresent? devices for feeding it through such mechanism. The retaining rollers of the mechanism 20 and 22 are, of course, raised in the manner described to provide for the insertion or removal ofthe film.

The sprocket 13 and the similar sprockets of the other film-operating mechanisms 20 and 22 are operated by suitable gearing from the shaft 23 of the projecting mechanism and which carries the crank-handle 4. I? or example the shaft 2 1 of the mechanism 20 is driven by spur gearing 25 from the shaft :23 and by spur and sprocket gearing 26 (Figure 7) drives the shaft 27 upon which the sprocket 13 is mounted. The gearing which operates the mechanism 22 is generally similar and its illustration is, therefor deemed unnecessary.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the stresses on the film are inconsiderable and are uniformly distributed both throughout the coil and throughout the running lengths. The movements of the film are uniform at all points and are effected at a constant rate while there are no unduly long unsupported portions to buckle or otherwise interfere with or retard the operation. The drawing clearly shows how all the working parts may be compactly arranged in a box which, in practice, may be about the size of an ordinary suit case and maybe readily carried in the hand from place to place.

Having fully described my invention ll claim:

1. In a motion picture projecting machine the combination of projectingmecha. nism having an operating shaft annular means for revolubly supporting a vertical coil I or film, said means being located in front of said mechanism and in a plane parallel to the focal axis and having an un- Mill obstructed side and an obstructedside, asupport towhich said means is hinged, stationary means effective in the operative position of said coil supporting means to prevent the displacement of the film from said unobstructed side, positively acting film feeding means located within said coil as supported by said supporting means and with which the lnner convolution of the coil is engaged,

said film feeding means having an operating shaft projecting through the unobstruoted side of said supporting means, and gearing operatively connecting the operating shafts of said projecting mechanism and said film feeding means to cause the latter to take film from the center of the coil, said annular supporting means being movable on its hinge toward and from the stationary means. J

2. In a motion picture projecting machine, the combination of projecting mechanism having an operating'shaft, annular means for revolubly supporting a. vertical coil or film, said means being located in front of said mechanism and in a plane parallel to the focal axis and havin an unobstructed side and anobstructed si e, a support to which said means is hinged, stationary means eflective in the operative position of said coil supporting means to prevent the displacement of the film from said unobstructed side, positively acting film feeding means located within said coil as supported by said supporting means and with which the inner convolution of the coil is engaged, said film feeding means having an operating shaft projecting throughv the unobstructed side of said supporting means, other positively acting film feeding means located beyond the projecting mechanism and intermediate said mechanism and the coil and gearing operatively connecting the o er-ating shaft of said projecting mechanism with both of said film feeding means to cause the first named film feeding means to take film from the center of the coil and to cause the last-named film feeding means to supply film to the rim of said coil, said annular supporting means being movable on its hinge toward and from the stationary for a vertical coil of film having an operative position wherein film is taken from the center of said coil, said support having an obstructed side and an unobstructed s1de, stationary means operative in the operative positlon-of said support to prevent the displacement of the coil from the unobstructed side, said support permittinga-the free rotation of said coil and said coil being freely revoluble in the operative position of said support, a driven shaft located adjacent the unobstructed side of said support in the operative position thereof and positively acting film feeding means arranged within the coil, and supported and operated by said shaft, said film feeding means taking film from the center of the coil and said sup-- port being movable on its hinge relatively to said film feeding means.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

WILLIAM J. BLANKENBERG. 

